Puppy grooming
Your puppy's first groom: a gentle introduction to the table
The first groom sets the tone for every one that follows. A doodle puppy who learns the dryer at fourteen weeks is easy at fourteen months; one who meets it for the first time at nine months with a matted coat is not. Here is how we run a first visit and what you can do at home before it.
Who and when
Between 12 and 16 weeks is the sweet spot for a first visit
Any puppy benefits from an early groom, but the coated breeds need it most: goldendoodles, labradoodles, bernedoodles, cockapoos, poodles, shih tzus, Havanese and the Bernese puppies who will weigh 90 pounds by their first birthday. Their coats change between six and twelve months, and a puppy who already trusts the tub and the table sails through that change. Short-coated puppies, labs and pointers among them, still gain from learning nails and the dryer early.
We suggest a first visit between 12 and 16 weeks, after your vet has finished the puppy's vaccines and cleared them for public places. Earlier than that and most puppies cannot hold still long enough for it to be useful; later and the easy learning window starts to close. Grooming needs no evaluation at Dogtown, so a puppy can come for a first groom before they are old enough for puppy daycare. If you are hoping to do both, the groom is a low-pressure first look at the building.
- Doodles, poodles, cockapoos, shih tzus, Havanese and other coated puppies
- Bernese, Newfoundland and other giant-breed puppies who will be hard to lift later
- Short-coated puppies who need nails and the dryer to feel normal
- Puppies 12 to 16 weeks old and cleared by their vet for outings
The visit
Forty-five minutes, no haircut, and a lot of treats
The first appointment is not a haircut. Our groomer starts on the floor, letting the puppy sniff the tools and the table before anything happens. Then a warm bath with a puppy shampoo, kept quick, and a dry that begins on low with the nozzle pointed away and moves closer only as the puppy relaxes. A gentle brush-out follows, then a nail trim, and finally the clippers are turned on near the puppy without cutting, so the sound becomes ordinary.
We stop before the puppy is done, not after. A first visit runs about 45 minutes to an hour, and a puppy who leaves wanting more comes back happier. If your puppy needs a face tidy so they can see, we add a $10 face trim at the end when the puppy is calm. A sanitary trim at $10 is often useful for a fluffy puppy. The full teddy bear cut waits for the second or third visit, once the puppy has shown us they can stand for it.
- 01
Book a bath-only appointment online or in the app and note that it is a first groom
- 02
Drop off at a window with a hungry puppy; we use their own treats if you bring them
- 03
Floor introduction to the table, the tub and the tools before any water
- 04
Quick warm bath, a low dryer that moves closer as the puppy settles, then a brush-out
- 05
Nail trim and a few minutes with the clippers running nearby, no cutting
- 06
Home after 45 minutes to an hour, with a note on what went well and what to practice
Price
A first groom is a bath-only price: $55 or $65 by weight
Because the first visit has no haircut, it is charged as a bath only: $55 for a puppy up to 25 pounds and $65 for 26 to 50 pounds, which covers almost every puppy at 12 to 16 weeks. Nail clipping is $16, a face trim $10 and a sanitary trim $10. When the puppy graduates to a full-service groom, the price moves to $75 or $85 for the same sizes and the bath is included in it. Book the second visit at pick-up and $5 comes off.
There is no puppy discount and no puppy premium; a puppy pays the size band like any other dog. If your puppy is anxious enough to need two groomers and a slower pace, the $20 behavior or handling surcharge applies, and we tell you at check-in. Most puppies at this age do not need it. Cancelling a grooming appointment without notice carries a $10 fee.
| Service | Up to 25 lb | 26 to 50 lb |
|---|---|---|
| First groom (bath, dry, brush-out) | $55 | $65 |
| Nail clipping | $16 | $16 |
| Face trim | $10 | $10 |
| Sanitary trim | $10 | $10 |
| Later: full-service groom with haircut | $75 | $85 |
At home first
Three weeks of homework that make the first visit easy
Start a few weeks before the appointment. Hold each paw for a second and give a treat, then longer. Run a soft brush over the puppy for ten seconds a day, then thirty. Turn a hair dryer on across the room while the puppy eats, and move it a foot closer each day. Stand the puppy on a towel on the washing machine for a few seconds so a raised surface is nothing new. Our how-to guide on introducing a puppy to the grooming table walks through the whole sequence.
Timing matters on Cape Ann. A spring puppy will hit the first groom in mud season, when a walk around Stage Fort Park comes home brown to the elbows; that puppy gets the bath they already needed. A summer puppy misses the beach entirely, since Gloucester's beaches close to dogs from May 1 to September 30 and Rockport's from June 1 to September 15, and meets sand for the first time in the fall. Either way, tick season runs April through November, so brushing at home doubles as a tick check.
- Paws handled daily, one second then longer, with a treat each time
- A soft brush for ten seconds a day, working up to a full pass
- A hair dryer running across the room at mealtimes, moved closer over a week
- A few seconds standing on a raised, non-slip surface
Getting here
Drop-off windows, the Pup Van and the puppy daycare next door
Weekday windows are 6:30 to 9:30 AM, 12 to 1 PM and 4 to 6:30 PM; Saturday's are 8 to 10 AM, 12 to 1 PM and 4 to 6 PM. For a first groom we like the midday slot, when the building is quietest and the puppy has had a morning to burn off energy. The Pup Van runs to Rockport, Gloucester, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea for $10 each way, though for a first visit most owners prefer to bring the puppy themselves.
If daycare is in your plans, the first groom and the free evaluation can be booked in the same week. The evaluation runs on weekday mornings from 6:30 to 9:30 AM by appointment, and your puppy needs Rabies, DHPP and Bordetella on file plus a current dog license; Gloucester issues those at the City Clerk's office at 9 Dale Ave for $20 for a spayed or neutered dog. Once evaluated, later grooms can be added to a puppy daycare day.
At Dogtown
After the first groom
The grooming studio your puppy just met, and the puppy daycare it can graduate to once the evaluation is done.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this
Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.
How old should my puppy be for a first groom?
Will my puppy get a haircut at the first appointment?
How long does a puppy's first groom take?
What should I bring to a puppy's first groom?
Does my puppy need an evaluation before grooming?
More questions? Read the full FAQ
Sources
Rules and dates change. We re-check every beach, licensing and ordinance page each spring and fall; the source above is the current word.
Keep reading
Next step
Make the first groom a good one.
Book a bath-only appointment for your puppy online or in the Dogtown app, note that it is a first groom, and bring treats. No evaluation is needed.
- 01Free evaluationWeekdays 6:30 – 9:30 AM
- 02Book a dayOnline, in the app or by phone
- 03Play, rest, repeatReport card at pick-up
